Thursday, May 19, 2011

Communicating Effectively

Email

Emails have been adopted as a common communication tool. Emails are one-way communication until the other part responds to it. Email could feel impersonal and add pressure to the other part involved. The use of acronym (ETA) could interrupt the message being sent and generate misunderstandings. If the writer knows the other person is busy why does she insists? If Mark and Jane collaborate as a team this email is not necessary as it is written, everyone should be aware of deadlines.

Voicemail

Listening to the voice of the speaker allows the listener feel and perceive the mood of the conversation. With the first example, I felt a lot of pressure and stress in the email. This feeling disappeared when listening to a voice that invited for collaboration. The voice sounded calm and showed professionalism.

Face 2 Face

Face to face communication is the best way to share important information. While observing the video, I felt personal connection, teamwork and cordiality. Her body language helps to communicate the message. The communicator is polite. The video was taken in a office setting which reflects that there is communication between parts and there is no need of an official meeting to express their needs.

The same message is shared in the three examples. The way I felt changed in every segment. Feelings can interfere with a person’s perception of communication. “Communication is not just words” (Stolovich, 2010). Since 93% of the communication is non-verbal, the use of just words limits the message. The tone of her voice, her gestures and her body language tells me, she that she is a team player.

I would prefer face to face or videoconference if distance becomes a challenge. Interaction helps to build trust and develop collaboration skills. This exercise teaches us to integrate all possible ways of communication. One point that Dr. Stolovich emphasizes in the importance of meeting face to face with all members, document the outcomes of the meeting and share it with all participants, accept feedback and modify as needed. Communication can affect any project if not used effectively.

7 comments:

My impression of the three versions of the communication were much the same as yours, the email versus the face to versions highlighted for me what Dr. Stolovich pointed out about the value of face to face interactions. A difference between the two is also the distractibility of the person reading the email and how that would influence the message being read. Yesterday at work, I was reading my email, listening to a voicemail and a co-worker stepped up to my desk to let me know about an issue she could not resolve and needed assistance with. Had I been reading Jane's email I might not have felt very happy about it. Face to face you can read the other person's emotions and gauge their meaning better.

It never seem to amaze me when we all can read and hear the same message and we all have different opinions and I love it! There isn’t a right or a wrong just difference of opinions.

I thought the tone in all three messages were effective. The messages in the email and voicemail came across as business friendly and very professional. Stolovitch (2010). The face-to-face message didn't add or take away from the other two messages; they all had the same affect for me.

I think there should have been more details in each of the messages. I would have asked for a date to have the report to me and I would have made sure to ask for the deliverables at least two days in advance. This would give me a couple of days to finish my report and get the final report in on time and perhaps share it with Mark. Written communication should begin with clear purpose and state the situation, include as much detail as possible. Stolovitch (2010) In all of Jane’s messages the details were minimal.

Hi Evylyn,I prefer the face-to-face interaction too. In your blog about face to face communication you wrote "I felt personal connection, teamwork and cordiality. Her body language helps to communicate the message". I agree with you the face-to-face interaction builds on the team concept and is an effective way to communicate. But sometimes we will need to follow up with some written documentation. In the video this week we learned that there are different standards of communication that are exceptable and oral communication is one of those. Whatever form of communication we use we have to be clear, concise and focused on the issue we need to experess.

I enjoy face-to-face for meetings but not when it comes to work requests and this example, I would rather have the e-mail. When I am busy, and other know it, I do not like to be interrupted while I am trying to work. Another thing is that when you work in cubicles, any conversation also disturbs the other members of the office. In my opinion, an e-mail can be read and addressed when the time was right. It really all depends on the communication preference of the receiver, in the video “Practitioner Voices: Strategies for Working with Stakeholders,” Dr. Budrovich recommended tailoring your communication to the individual’s needs and preferences. You tend to learn this when working with a team or you can ask in the kick off meeting what everyone's preferences are when communicating. Some people love to talk and have meetings while others would rather keep everything on e-mail. In my opinion, the best way to be an effective communicator is to learn how the people around you communicate. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and ideas.

Great post. I felt the same way as you about each mode of communication. I have always been someone who loves e-mail over phone calls but now can see I need to think about which mode I use. When we decide on which mode, the important thing is to know the audience. I felt the email message was too long but if the two of them email a lot, maybe it was appropriate. Again you need to know the audience and what mode is best.

The e-mail messages are a great way to document conversations and Dr. Stolovitch (2011) says to document everything. He also points out like you said that 93% of communication is non-verbal. Budrovich (2011) talked about having to go in and do a short summary with a stakholder who didn't respond well to any other communication. The key if figuring out who the audience is and which mode is best.

I enjoyed reading your post, it was clear and to the point. I personally prefer the face to face interaction because I will be able to see the person and study their bodily language wihile receiving and understanding what the person intends to communicate. This modality allows me to listen,think, and respond in a timely manner.

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